Burke hopes Watford grudge match will 'spark' the Hatters into life
Luton have struggled in the Championship so far
Defender Reece Burke is hoping that Saturday’s eagerly-anticipated grudge match against Town’s fiercest rivals Watford will provide the much-needed ‘spark’ for Luton’s indifferent start to the season.
Rob Edwards' side will approach the contest at Kenilworth Road, which kicks off at 12.30pm, in a pretty desperate run of form, having taken just one point from their last three games, suffering defeats against Plymouth Argyle and Sheffield United. It meant that they went into the international break sitting fourth bottom in the table, a world away from the promotion battle that they had targeted before the campaign began.
The Hornets have struggled for consistency too as after starting the season with five straight wins, have triumphed just twice in their last seven matches, losing four of them. Tom Cleverley's side are still sixth though, making them favourites for a game that Hatters fans will expect nothing less than a barnstorming performance from their side, something they haven’t witnessed yet over a full 90 minutes this term.
Speaking about the magnitude of the fixture, Burke, who was an unused substitute during the 2-0 victory that Edwards’ side secured when the Hornets last visited Bedfordshire in April 2023, said: “There’s no doubt about that, we haven’t got going yet, so it’s very frustrating. We know it’s a big game, but I think the bottom line is we need to be better in terms of the basics of the game. We’re giving away too many chances, causing ourselves our own problems and I think that’s been the issue since the start of the season.
"We know the next game is big for us. It will be a big positive if we put on a big performance, do the basics well, be horrible to play against and hopefully get the three points and push on from there. Hopefully it brings that spark, gets the boys going and brings out that fight, that hunger to go out and get three points for the team, for the fans and really kick on our season as I know we shouldn’t be where we are.”
Although Luton have struggled themselves, Burke is having a good season on a personal level, one of the only players to leave Bramall Lane with any credit last time out. Having missed the opening three games of the campaign due to an injury he picked up in the final weeks of the Premier League season, the centre half was back for the Carabao Cup loss to QPR in August, going on to start the last six league games.
If he is named in the team to face Watford, it will be the first time he has been begun seven successive league matches since joining the club in 2022, as on his own efforts, he added: “I didn’t really get a pre-season so I went straight back into it, but I think that (Sheffield United loss) was my fifth game in a row playing 90 minutes, so for me it’s just trying to stay fit. I’ll always work hard for the team when I’m playing and I’ll always give 100 percent, so hopefully I’ll stay fit and I can keep playing.”